As Phil G has mentioned if you park by the end of the fence (rhs) at the end of Isherwood Rd (just prior to the Man U barrier) you can take the public footpath to the right which runs between a small ditch and the Shell reserve fence (I was down there last week and its clear - although muddy !). Always keeping the fence on your rhs you will eventually walk past the end of the reserve area and then directly behind the plant. If you ignore a path that goes left and carry on about 50yds (the path narrows and the vegetation closes in) you will come to the end of a hedge line. If you walk through the vegetation to the left to the field edge you can view down the hedge line (this is the northern boundary of field 2 on the Carrington Moss map - ref County Birding Sites & Map on the main website). For the last 2 winters Corn Bunt (upto 12 last winter from memory) have congregated in this hedge line with a large mixed flock of other Bunts and Finches. They travel between this hedge line and the hedge line at the rear of the old orchard (which is directly on your left when stood in the position above), again refer map.Other potential areas (no flock was in the above location last Thursday when I visited) are around the intersection of fields 1,2,10&11 (should also be Stonechat here on the telephone wires) and possibley in the short hedge line between fields 4&12.

Phil P,

If you also refer map above there are plenty of routes from that starting point; you can take the path with fields 68, 67, 25 on your LHS and then drop over the old railway bridge to fields 10 & 11 and then to intersection as mentioned above. You can then either go left or right and work your way back around.

You can walk for a long time on Carrington Moss if you want to !!!!

Keep away from the track to the west of field 8. The one and only time I went down there (on a bike) I was chased by the Farmers Rottweiler - a turn of speed Chris Boardman would have been proud of !!!!

Hi,Just park at the end of Isherwood Road, before the Man U barrier. Don't park in front of the green gates leading to the Shell Reserve. Despite the barrier, you can walk along any of the paths. The barrier is just to stop none-farm and none-Man U traffic.The path just along the south boundary of the Shell Reserve is rather overgrown and was fairly impassable last time I tried, so I don't normally bother.

I fancy a walk around Carrington Moss in the near future looking for corn bunting, which have long since left the Rochdale area along with yellowhammers, but never been before. Previous reports seem to suggest the area around the north part of the field map from Isherwood road. Is there a favoured parking spot or anywhere on the road and are there any particular do's and don'ts to follow!CheersSteve

Also 16/11 afternoon walk, starting at Isherwood Road, south to field 13, right between 12/13 and 4 until end of 11. Left between 10 and 11 to old railway line. East along RW line to end of 22. Left between 22 and 23, past Birchmoss Covert, back to Isherwood Road. Most of area is SJ79H.

44+ Lapwing this evening, aand good numbers of Swift and House Martin, tried a few of last year's sites but no Quail or Yellow Wagtail, Yellowhammers noisy, no sign of the Little Owl at its usual spot but always harder to see when trees in leaf.

Long walk around the Moss this morning (17/4) - very quiet and little new. Best of the day was a Cuckoo at Altrincham Sewage Works. Quite a few swallows about, also lots of Chiffchaffs and Willow Warblers, but disappointingly no other warblers found. Green Woodpecker near Sinderland Green, and 20+ Corn Buntings near the flare (Field 1). Just off the Moss there was an adult Med Gull on the playing fields on Manor Avenue in Sale - presumably one of the birds from the Moss.

Carrington Moss this morningWhite Wagtail in field 4Ad Med Gull feeding in field 16Green Woodpecker field 17Oystercatcher 2 on Man United training groundNo Wheatears found - I checked most of the North side of Carrington Moss.

Carrington Moss 2nd March - Great Spot Woodpecker drumming at four sites, Buzzard 1 - 2 seen throughout the day, Stock Dove 24 in field 25, and 12 in field 1; also in field 1 - 14 Corn Buntings, and about 40 yellowhammer; also 15+ yellowhammer in field 17, and 15 more in field 25. Willow Tit at Dark Lane (field 27) and also in field 26. 1 Chiffchaff singing in Altrincham Sewage Works, also pairs of Gadwall and Tufted. Sinderland Green Woods - 22 Fieldfare and singing Grey Wagtail. Little Owl not in normal tree visible from farm road, but was in another low tree 50 metres further west, visible only from path through Brookheys Covert. 60 species plus Peacock and Comma butterflies.

The Tree Sparrow's usually found on the Moss are, I think, from the population that summers at Red House Farm, in Dunham (the farm is on the RSPB scheme). I didn't go last summer so am not sure of the numbers that were there so I've been searching for them over the winter period. >Steve - thats a very good record for Flixton, is the golf course Flixtons or Willy Wroe ??>Jeff - 64 is a very good record for the area.

I havn't seen Tree Sparrows on Carrington Moss for some months - the best place used to be Sinderland Green.

Had quite a long walk around the Moss today - Field 12 - mixed flock of 50+ buntings including 16+ Corn, female Stonechat (present since November), Raven overhead, 100s or corvids panicking around field 12, but no sign of Peregrine; Field 25 - 10 Stock doves and one or two pairs elsewhere around the moss; Brookheys - Fieldfare (5), Little Owl, Buzzard, Field 18 - Buzzard, Shoveller (6), Gadwall, Little Grebe, Curlew overhead; Field 17 - mixed Chaffinches and buntings - maybe 20 Yellowhammers, only one Corn Bunting. Sinderland Green Woods - Nuthatch and Great Spot Woodpecker, also Treecreeper and Nuthatch in Firs Wood (off the edge of the map, far eastern end of the Moss). 64 species in total before lunch - my best day for some time!

Nick Hilton wrote:I see from the local rag the Pigs did you by 5 points !

Sorry Nick, I seemed to have missed this original post! 'The Pigs'? Nice name and they did indeed win by 5 (I think!), probably the biggest set of lads we've come across and didn't give me any chance to check out overflying gulls or thrushes as has become a rather dangerous distraction of mine

Construction work is noisely ongoing at the back of the plant so buntings & finches flightly, may account for the lack of the usual 10 or so Corn Bunts that have been in this area. On the rugby pitch at Carrington SJ738927Fieldfare 50+Redwing 25+

I've been watching Little Owls in the same tree for 30 years at the Sinderland side to 'the moss' near Brookhey's Covert. Turn off Sinderland Lane towards Brookhey's Farm, half way up the lane is a small pull-in spot on the left, stop here and scan the nearest oaks to the left.